Alexander the Great: Place his army invaded reduced to ashes

The historic village of Malana, which traces its origins to 326 BC when Alexander's Macedonian army invaded the northwestern outposts of India and produces the world's finest hashish (Malana cream), was gutted in a raging inferno that began late on Saturday night.

Firefighters had to break down houses in the village to make a fire line that managed to save about 40% of the houses in the 10,000-foot high Himalayan habitat, but the lower half of the village was completely burned. Three villagers have reported burn injuries, among roughly 1,000 people who live there.

Also destroyed in the fire, which started from a house, were four temples, including the shrine of Malana's presiding deity, Jamlu Devta. The other temples, of Atharah Karadu Devta and of Renuka Mata, too were reduced to cinders, along with priceless artefacts and heirlooms that go back several centuries.